POINT OF VIEW

Point of View—the camera position (or viewpoint) combined with camera angle when viewing a scene and capturing a picture

there may be as many photographic points of view as there are moments to capture…the possibilities are literally endless
Are you laying on the ground, looking up at your subject? Are you flying in a helicopter, looking down at the landscape below? Or are you simply standing and looking straight-on at your subject? Whether you’re looking up, down, or straight-on changes the scene dramatically, and changes the final interpretation of a photograph.
Subjects can be dramatically distorted simply by where you place your camera. A blade of grass can look like a skyscraper, and a skyscraper can look like a tiny little house. It all depends on your point of view!
While most of you probably take a majority of your photographs straight-on, it can be a good idea to start looking at subjects from different angles. While you probably don’t want to be known as “the photographer who always takes photos while lying down on the ground,” switching your position every once in a while can lead to very interesting results.
The proper camera position and camera angle is an important factor in good composition. repositioning your subject within the viewfinder frame and changing the camera viewpoint or camera angle are two simple ways of controlling composition.

Worm's Eye View: Shooting from Below...

Low viewpoints and low camera angles can add emphasis and interest to many ordinary photographs. A low camera angle is achieved when the camera angle is located below the point of primary interest and pointed upward.

A low viewpoint can be used to distort scale or add strength to a picture or to emphasize certain elements within the picture

Low angles tend to lend strength and dominance to a subject and dramatize the subject.

Low angle shots are used when dramatic impact is desired.

This type of shot is very useful for separating the subject from the background, for eliminating unwanted foreground and background, and for creating the illusion of greater size and speed

Worm's Eye View is pictured here...this effect improves this composition by making the rocks seem bigger and the ocean seem closer that they really are...giving you the feeling of being right there in those rocks

Bird’s-Eye View: Shooting from Above…

High viewpoints and high camera angles help orient the viewer, because they show relationships among all elements within the picture area and produce a psychological effect by minimizing the apparent strength or size of the subject.

The psychological effect of a bird's-eye view is to make the subject appear smaller and, by association, weaker or more subdued, subjects are often the objects of sympathy. Shooting from above a subject allows the viewer to feel superior to the subject or convey a sense of protectiveness of the subject, and is often also called a God’s Eye View. It can also give the viewer the impression that they are the object of the attention of the subject in the photo, as though it was the viewer placed on a stage.

Bird's-eye views are useful in a number of scenarios. Overhead shots of buildings or a landscape can be useful for establishing a setting or including a large visual field within a single image. Similarly, viewing a human figure from above can locate them in their space in a way that lower angles might not.

Bird's Eye View is pictured here...for this picture it lets you see the whole scene more dramatically with the feeling of looking down on the ocean from atop the cliff, gives the impression that the structures look like they are marching onto shore like invading marines..

Eye Level View

With the camera held horizontal, eye-level shots are usually made at a height of about 5 1/2 feet, the height from which the average adult sees, and with the camera horizontal.

With the camera held at eye level but pointed up or down, the camera position changes and you have either a low or high camera angle, respectively. This is the most common way to photograph a subject. After all, it is typically the way we regard most subjects in our day to day lives, especially other people.

While photographing humans from eye level is fairly common, what would happen if you photographed other subjects from eye level, such as an animal? While we interact with people on the same level every day, we hardly get face-to-face with a fox, or a bird, or a snake. Since we often don’t interact with these sort of subjects at eye level, photographing them from this perspective allows viewers to feel more connected with them – especially if the subject is making direct eye contact with the camera. It evokes a sense of familiarity and empathy, even with animals that we would be frightened to find ourselves face-to-face with in real life.

Eye-Level View is pictured here...by using eye-level view, it gives you the impression of standing on the beach, but also creates a better symmetry with a frame in a frame with the ruins framing the ruins behind it in the water...

Eye-Level View is pictured here...by using eye-level view, it gives you the impression of standing right in front of "Charlie" a famous pelican at the Oceanside Pier in California...seems like you can almost reach out and touch him, and feel him stare at you

Becoming the Subject View

A powerful point of view involves that you shoot the photo from the angle of the subject. This point of view tends to be the most effective when photographing human subjects.

To use this technique, photograph your subject from the point of view of the person interacting with the subject. For instance, if you were to take a shot of someone making dinner, take a photograph of the food as if you were the chef – perhaps even including hands in the foreground for reference.

These sort of images make the viewer feel as though they are experiencing the scene themselves, and makes it easy to put themselves in the photographer’s place. An image from this point of view can be captivating, heartwarming, or even slightly disturbing depending on the subjects you decide to photograph.

For example, a shot of surgery shown as though you were looking through the surgeon's eyes (patient and surgeon's hands visible but not the surgeon's face/body). These shots allow the viewer to feel like they are experiencing the event first hand.

Becoming the Subject View is pictured here...using a very shallow depth of field, this image gives you the focus of actually being the person whose finger this baby's tiny hand is holding

Becoming the Subject View is pictured here...this creates the impression that you are the one driving this motorcycle down this dirt road in the countryside

Juxtaposition

Juxtaposition view is putting two opposite things together, and the contrast of those two things becomes interesting. You are making a statement through the contrast of elements you put in the frame…for example, shooting a subject from an "unexpected" angle will have more impact than the viewing angle encountered in everyday life; Tall person next to short person, Dark colors next to light colors, Circles next to rectangles; Old things next to new things, reality next to fantasy, a car in the middle of a desert; looking up at an ant will have a much more visual impact than looking down on an ant; Or an eye-level shot of a bird is much more powerful than looking up at a bird in a tree

Juxtaposition View is pictured here...this creates a unique view of the cat being upside down to create curiousity and thus extra interest in the image

Juxtaposition View is pictured here...this creates the seeming impression that the water from the image is flowint into the tap above the tub creating something unique and thought provoking, and thus extra interest in the image

Juxtaposition View is pictured here...this creates the impression you are in the water swimming with this dog, a very unique point of view!

Juxtaposition View is pictured here to give the impression that this is the world's smallest house...this is created by using linear perspective from eye-level point of view to not show the actual depth of the house